JP2006324771A - Video signal delimiter information setting method and apparatus judged from audio and video signal - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a technology capable of setting a proper chapter dividing point even when a plurality of scene changes exist in an optional (CM) segment and a plurality of audio modes are intermingled in a program. <P>SOLUTION: A delimiter information setting apparatus includes a video structural processing section 11p that analyzes the similarity between consecutive frames of a video signal to obtain first delimiter information providing delimination according to semantic contents of the video signal, and an optional segment detection processing section 11q of an audio signal. Then second delimiter information is generated in a silence part of the audio signal to set an optional segment, and third delimiter information is obtained by overlapping the first and second delimiter information items. In this case, when the first delimiter information exists in the optional segment, the first delimiter information is not adopted. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for setting delimiter information of video signals determined from audio and video signals in order to obtain video structuring. That is, it is a method and apparatus used when capturing the characteristics of each of the audio signal and the video signal and structuring the video by, for example, chapter division.

In a television broadcast signal, a commercial (CM) time is usually provided at a program boundary or in the middle of a program. There is an apparatus that detects a candidate section of the CM section from a voice mode (for example, Patent Document 1). In addition, there is a device that detects a silence period regardless of the sound mode and sets delimiter information at a predetermined position during the silence period (for example, Patent Document 2). When the silent period exists, for example, 15 seconds away, the CM period is determined. There is also a technique for detecting a change point of video information and setting a chapter division point.
JP 2000-354225 A JP 2003-047031 A

  In the above conventional technique, when the chapter division point is set from the analysis information of only the video signal, the chapter division point is included in the CM section, particularly in the section where a plurality of sponsor CMs are broadcast continuously. May occur.

  Also, if it is determined that the audio mode (stereo mode) is the CM period, if the main volume other than the CM period includes audio in the stereo mode, or if stereo and monaural are mixed, the CM period is accurate. It becomes impossible to identify only. In addition, in the device that detects the silent period and generates the delimiter information, the accuracy depends on the silent detection.

  Therefore, according to the present invention, even when there are a plurality of scene changes in an arbitrary (CM) section, and even if a plurality of audio modes are mixed in a program, chapter division is not added to the arbitrary (CM) section. It is another object of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for setting delimiter information for video signals determined from audio and video signals, which can obtain appropriate delimiter information for the main part.

  In the present invention, the apparatus for analyzing the similarity between consecutive frames of the video signal and obtaining the first delimiter information divided according to the semantic content of the video signal has a control unit for analyzing the audio signal, The control unit detects a silent part of the audio signal, detects a section in which the time interval between the silent part and the next silent part and the detected silent part count number satisfy a predetermined condition, and detects the first and last silent parts. Second delimiter information is generated for the part, the first delimiter information and the second delimiter information are overlapped to obtain third delimiter information, and the second delimiter given to the first and last silent sections When the first delimiter information exists between information, the first delimiter information is not adopted.

  As described above, when setting the delimiter information (chapter division point) to the video signal, the final delimiter information is obtained from the plurality of analysis information (analysis information of the audio signal and the video signal), thereby including a plurality of delimiters in the program. Even if similar scenes are mixed, appropriate delimiter information for the main part can be set.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a configuration example of a signal processing apparatus to which the present invention is applied. This signal processing apparatus can be applied to, for example, a digital television receiving apparatus or an information recording / reproducing apparatus.

  The tuner 1 receives, for example, a digital broadcast signal, demodulates the received signal, and supplies a demodulated output to the transport decoder 2. The video signal / audio signal of the program selected by the transport decoder 2 is input to a per-packet audio video (AV) decoder 3 and demodulated. The audio output demodulated by the AV decoder 3 is output to the output terminal 4A, and the video output is output to the output terminal 4P. The video signal from the on-screen display (OSD) controller 6 may be synthesized with the video signal at the output terminal 4P by the synthesis circuit 5.

  The direct RDRAM 7 is used for temporarily storing data from the AV decoder 3 or the OSD controller 6. The SDRAM 8 is used for temporarily storing data, for example, when performing error correction processing of a received signal. For example, the EEPROM 9 is used to store programs or parameters for executing the functions of the apparatus.

  Reference numeral 10 denotes a main bus, which is connected to the transport decoder 2, AV decoder 3, OSD controller 6, SDRAM 8, EEPROM 9, and the like. The main bus 10 is connected to a CPU 11 that is a control unit that controls the apparatus. Furthermore, this apparatus can be connected to an external device via the bus 10. For this purpose, a modem interface 12a, a LAN terminal 12b, a Bluetooth interface 12c, a remote control interface 12d, and an ATAPI interface 12e are connected to the main bus 10. It is also possible to connect the hard disk drive 13 via the interface 12e. An AV encoder 14 is connected to the main bus 10 and can convert a video signal into a predetermined format (for example, DVD standard) recorded on a recording medium.

  Here, in the CPU 11, an image structuring processing unit 11p (may be referred to as a magic chapter division function), an arbitrary section detection processing unit 11q (may be referred to as a main chapter automatic chapter division function), and a chapter boundary setting processing unit. 11r is provided.

  As will be described later, the video structuring processing unit 11p can analyze the similarity between consecutive frames of the video signal and obtain first delimiter information divided according to the semantic content of the video signal. The first delimiter information (chapter division point) is input to the chapter boundary setting processing unit 11r. The arbitrary section detection processing unit 11q detects a silent part of the audio signal and determines whether or not the time interval between the silent part and the next silent part is a multiple of a certain time (A). If the time interval is a multiple of a certain time (A), the detection of silent parts is counted. If the number of silent parts is equal to or greater than the threshold (B), the first and last silent parts are counted. 2 delimiter information (arbitrary section information, voice section information, or CM section information) can be acquired. This second delimiter information is also input to the chapter boundary setting processing unit 11r. The chapter boundary setting processing unit 11r does not adopt the first delimiter information when the first delimiter information is present in an arbitrary section set by the second delimiter information.

  The arbitrary section detection processing unit 11q includes a silence detection device 25. The silence detection device 25 detects a portion where the sound level is below a threshold for a predetermined time as a silence portion. At this time, the silence detection device 25 outputs silence information and supplies it to the silence time recording device 26. That is, the silent part time recording device 26 accumulates silent part information (information of the time when the silent part is determined) in the program. The silent time information recorded in the silent time recording device 26 is processed by the silent part interval calculating device 27. When the silent part interval calculation device 27 is further blocked, the silent part time interval measuring unit 27a that determines whether or not the time interval between the silent part and the next silent part is a multiple of a certain time (A), and the time interval If it is a multiple of a certain time (A), the silent part count processing unit 27b that counts the detection of the silent part, and if the silent part count number is equal to or greater than the threshold (B), the silent part that appears first and last On the other hand, it includes a silence condition determination unit 27c for setting delimiter information.

  In FIG. 2, for easy understanding of the description, representative components of the characteristic portion of the above-described apparatus are extracted and shown. Therefore, the parts corresponding to the components in FIG. The video signal (including the audio signal here) received and demodulated by the tuner 11 is input to the video structuring processing unit 11p and the arbitrary section detection processing unit 11q. The first delimiter information (which may be referred to as structured information) and the second delimiter information (which may be referred to as arbitrary section information) obtained by the respective processing units are input to the chapter boundary setting processing unit 11r. Is done. Here, the chapter boundary setting unit 11r obtains third delimiter information obtained by superimposing the first and second delimiter information. However, a chapter division point that satisfies a predetermined condition is not adopted, and the adopted chapter division point is inserted into the management information of the recording device 13.

  FIG. 3 shows an operation example of the main part of the above apparatus. Assume that chapter division points (first delimiter information) such as c1, c2,..., C5 are detected by the video structuring processing unit 11p in the time direction of the current program. On the other hand, in the time direction of the same program, the arbitrary section detection processing unit 11q detects the second delimiter information m1, m2, m3, and m4, and the arbitrary section is between m1 and m2, and between m3 and m4. It is assumed that

  Then, delimiter information c3 detected by the video structuring processing unit 11p exists in an arbitrary section (m1-m2). In such a case, this apparatus rejects this delimiter information c3. As a result, chapter division points are not added within an arbitrary section (for example, a section where stereo audio is continuous). The arbitrary section is, for example, a section where the audio mode is continuous without changing, or a section where the stereo mode is continuous. Furthermore, it is a section where audio frequencies within a predetermined band are continuous.

  FIG. 4 shows still another embodiment of the present invention. A different part from the example of FIG. 3 is an example when the arbitrary section detection processing unit 11q is used for CM section detection. Also in this case, for example, it is assumed that a section of m1-m2 and a section of m3-m4 are detected as CM sections. It is assumed that the delimiter information c3 detected by the video structuring processing unit 11p exists in the CM section (m1-m2). In such a case, this apparatus rejects this delimiter information c3. As a result, chapter division points are not set in the CM section.

  FIG. 5 shows still another embodiment of the present invention. 3 and 4 are provided with a storage device 11r1 for temporarily storing the first delimiter information and a storage device 11r2 for temporarily storing the second delimiter information. Then, the chapter boundary setting processing unit 11r uses the storage device 11r1, the first delimiter information from 11r2 (for example, turning point information to be chapter division points), and the second delimiter information (for example, CM section information). , Generating chapter division points. Also in this case, the delimiter information c3 existing in the CM section (m1-m2) is not adopted.

  When the storage devices 11r1 and 11r2 are provided as described above, chapter division points can be set when video information is reproduced from a recording medium. In the example of FIGS. 3 and 4, it is necessary to detect the delimiter information in real time and set the chapter division point for each program. However, in the example of FIG. 5, after the program is once recorded on the recording medium, an operation can be performed in which the chapter division point can be set for the desired program.

  FIG. 6 shows still another embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention. A different part from the example of FIG. 3, FIG. 4 is an example when the arbitrary area detection process part 11q is used for a music area detection. Also in this case, for example, it is assumed that a section of m1-m2 and a section of m3-m4 are detected as music sections. It is assumed that the delimiter information c3 detected by the video structuring processing unit 11p exists in the music section (m1-m2). In such a case, this apparatus rejects this delimiter information c3. As a result, chapter division points are not set in the music section.

  FIG. 7 shows a flowchart for explaining the operation of the main part of the apparatus of the present invention. When the process starts, the video structuring processing unit 11p analyzes the video signal, detects, for example, a scene conversion point, and temporarily registers it as a chapter division point in the memory (step SE1). Next, the arbitrary section detection processing unit 1111q analyzes the voice signal to detect the arbitrary section, and temporarily registers the arbitrary section information in the memory (step SE2). Next, it is determined whether a chapter division point (for example, a scene turning point) has been detected (step SE3). If a chapter division point (for example, a turning point of a scene) is not detected, the process ends. If a chapter division point is detected, the process proceeds to the next step. Next, as described in various examples in FIGS. 3 to 6, when there is a division point in an arbitrary section, this division point is ignored and another division point is set as a chapter boundary (step SE4, SE5).

  8 and 9 are shown for explaining a typical operation example of the video structuring processing unit 11p. The processing here is called, for example, processing by “magic chapter division”. This function mainly analyzes video data and determines the similarity of field or frame images. Then, a chapter boundary is determined by performing cut detection, determination of similar shots, calculation of interaction frequency, and the like. Here, the area between the cut points is called a shot.

  The above-mentioned “cut detection” compares an I picture frame with an I picture frame (or a frame every 0.5 seconds), and an area in which the hue of the entire screen is greatly different or a luminance change is large is set in advance. If there are more parameters, the frame is determined to be dissimilar. The point determined as dissimilar may be referred to as a turning point.

  Then, by sequentially comparing frames that are 0.5 seconds apart, and there is a section in which the number of sets of dissimilar frames is equal to or greater than a threshold, a method of setting a cut point at an arbitrary point in this section It is. FIG. 8 shows a state in which the similarity between frames indicated by arrows is determined. And, it shows a state in which cut points are set in a portion where there are many sets of dissimilar frames. fn, fn-1, fn-2,..., fe, fe-1, fe-2,.

  In the above-mentioned “similar shot detection”, similarity determination between frames is performed based on the round-robin of several frames backed by past cut points and several frames after the latest cut points. FIG. 9 shows a brute force state. When the number of sets of frames determined to be “similar” is equal to or greater than the threshold value, both shots are determined to be similar. That is, as shown in FIG. 9, it is determined whether the frames between the shot A before the cut point and the shot D after the cut point are similar. In the example of the figure, the similarity determination is obtained for the number of circles, for example.

  “Interaction detection” and “interaction frequency” are defined as follows. (A) A section (part) where similar shots appear intensively is a meaningful section. (B) In order to quantify how densely similar shots appear, an index called “interaction frequency” is introduced. The “interaction frequency” increases as the following conditions are satisfied. (B1) A lot of shots are included (= cut points appear frequently). (B2) The number of shots contributing to the conversation (= similar) is large. (B3) The total time of the shots contributing to the dialogue (= similar) is long.

  Based on the above (c) dialogue frequency, a dialogue interval is calculated. Then, (d) adjacent dialog sections are connected.

  The “magic chapter division” function is basically executed by the above processing. When a cut point is set and a similar shot is detected, the above processing may be sufficient. However, in order to add a function for reconstructing a plurality of program structures, the following functions may be included.

  That is, a “news program specific process” function and an “other program process” function. A “news program unique process” function and topic top shot detection are performed. It is assumed that a similar shot that is distributed to some extent in the program, appears to a certain extent, and appears more than a certain number of times is a “topic top shot”. If the “topic top shot” is continuous, the last shot in the series is determined to be the true “topic top shot”, and the others are determined to be “follow-up on the previous topic”. In the “other program processing” function, a “corner title detection” function is set. This function determines that similar shots that are widely distributed in the program, do not belong to the dialogue section, and appear more than a certain number of times are “corner titles”. If a corner title does not appear even after a while after the program starts, it is regarded as a “program without a corner title”.

  As described above, when information on the cut point of a program, information on similar shots, information on the topic head of a news program, and information on corner titles of other programs are obtained, when editing a program, or When it is constructed, it can be used as effective information.

  10 to 14 are diagrams for explaining a specific example of the above-described arbitrary section detection processing unit 11q.

  In FIG. 10, the broadcast signal is received by the tuner 21. The tuner 21 outputs video / audio signals of the program of the selected channel. The audio signal is demodulated and decoded by the audio signal processing unit 22. The output of the audio signal processing unit 22 is supplied to an encoder unit 23 and a silence detection device 25 described later.

  The encoder unit 23 encodes the video signal and the audio signal in a predetermined format based on the DVD standard, and supplies the output to the data processing unit 24. The data processing unit 24 can modulate and record information on a hard disk, a DVD-R, a DVD-RW, or a DVD-RAM. In addition, the information read from the disk can be demodulated. It also includes processing functions related to error correction codes (ECC).

  The output of the audio signal processing unit 22 is further supplied to the silence detection device 25. The silence detection device 25 detects a portion where the sound level is below a threshold for a predetermined time as a silence portion. At this time, the silence detection device 25 outputs silence information and supplies it to the silence time recording device 26. That is, the silent part time recording device 26 accumulates silent part information (information of the time when the silent part is determined) in the program.

  The silent time information recorded in the silent time recording device 26 is used by the silent portion interval calculating device 27. Here, it is determined whether or not the time interval between the silent portion and the next silent portion is a multiple of a certain time (A). If the time interval is a multiple of the fixed time (A), the silent part is counted, and if the silent part count is equal to or greater than the threshold (B), the first and last silent parts are In order to set delimiter information, the first part is supplied to the chapter boundary setting device 28 as CM start information and the last as CM end information.

  As a result, the chapter boundary setting device 28 generates chapter information and supplies it to the data processing unit 24. The data processing unit 24 converts chapter information into entry points in the DVD standard management information and manages them.

  The video information is processed by the video signal processing unit 29, input to the encoder unit 23, and converted into data of a predetermined DVD standard. Then, the output of the encoder unit 23 is recorded on the optical disc 101 via the data processing unit 24.

  Here, when the silent part interval calculation device 27 is further blocked, the silent part time interval measuring unit 27a that determines whether or not the time interval between the silent part and the next silent part is a multiple of a predetermined time (A). If the time interval is a multiple of a certain time (A), the silent part count processing unit 27b that counts the detection of the silent part, and if the silent part count is equal to or greater than the threshold (B), the first and last A silent part condition determination unit 27c for setting delimiter information is included for the silent part that appears.

  In FIG. 11, the silent information is obtained by the silent detection device 25, the silent time storage device 26, the silent portion interval calculation device 27, and the chapter boundary setting device 28 for setting the time when the silent portion is detected and the chapter boundary. The given time is shown on the time axis. In order to make the explanation easy to understand, the explanation will be simplified. This figure is an example in which there are two commercial periods in one program (for example, a program reserved for recording).

In the example, four commercials CM1, CM2, CM3, and CM4 are broadcast during the first commercial period, and three commercials CM5, CM2, and CM3 are broadcast during the second commercial period.

  For example, when the first commercial period is viewed, a silent part detection flag is obtained because there is a silent period at each commercial break. However, after CM4, since the conditions described later are not satisfied, the end of CM4 is determined as the chapter boundary position. The position of the silent part detection flag immediately before the start of the first CM1 is set as the chapter boundary. That is, a flag indicating a chapter boundary is obtained before and after the commercial period. Similarly, in the second commercial period, a chapter boundary is not set for all silent parts, but a plurality of CMs satisfying a predetermined condition (successively broadcast) are grouped, The chapter boundary is set as the unit.

  In FIG. 12, the steps for performing the above-described processing are shown in large blocks. It is determined whether or not the chapter setting process for one program has been completed (step SA1). If it has not been completed, a silence detection process is performed in order to detect a silent part (step SA2). When the silent part is detected, the time when the silent part is detected is stored as described above (step SA3). When the management information is processed at the end of the program, a chapter boundary is set as an entry point in the management information as described in FIG.

  FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing a state in which the chapter boundary at the CM start point and the chapter boundary at the CM end point are determined when silent portions are successively detected in the commercial period. When the process starts, first, when a silent part is detected, i is used as information indicating the order of the silent part. When the first silent part is detected, i ← 1, CM count value (cm_count) is set to cm_count ← 0, the last silent part time (last_silent) is set to last_silent ← 0, and the detected silent part time ( (silent) is also set to <← 0 (step SB1).

  When the number of silent parts is smaller than i when the silent part is detected, the previous time (silent) is set to last_silent ← silent, and the current time (silent) is set to the time of the i-th silent part. (Steps SB2, SB3). Next, (silent) − (last_silent) is calculated, and it is determined whether or not this value is a multiple of 15 seconds. This is because commercials are often broadcast in units of 15 seconds or multiples thereof.

  If it is 15 seconds (value A) or a multiple thereof, it is determined whether cm_count = 0 (step SB5). When it is 0, it is immediately after the commercial count is started. Since i-1 corresponds to the commercial start time, start ← i-1 is set in step SB6.

  If cm_count ≠ 0 in step SB5, this means that the commercial period has already started, and the process proceeds to step SB7 where +1 is added to cm_count. After step SB7, the process (i + 1) is performed (step SB8), and the process returns to step SB2.

  In the previous step SB4, when the calculation result of (silent) − (last_silent) is not a multiple of 15 seconds (value A), it is regarded as not being a commercial period. At this time, the process proceeds to step SB9, where it is determined whether cm_count accumulated so far satisfies cm_count> threshold (B). If satisfied, it is determined that a plurality of commercial groups have been broadcast, and the current i obtained by accumulating the start (strat) at this time is obtained as the CM start point and CM end point. This is reported to the boundary setting device (step SB10). Thereafter, cm_count = 0 and i = 0 are set.

  Note that the fixed time (value A) may be variable. In order to change the value A, a user guidance menu for special setting is prepared and can be changed. The threshold (B) may have a certain margin.

  FIG. 14 shows the operation in the chapter boundary setting device 28. This shows a procedure for acquiring information on the start point and end point of CM (step SC1) and setting a chapter boundary (step SC2).

  As described above, according to the method and apparatus of the present invention, in the commercial broadcasting period, a silent part is detected, and not all positions are set as chapter boundaries, but the start positions of a plurality of continuous commercials (continuous commercial groups) The end position is detected.

  The user can set operation on and operation off of the above function by selection. In this case, the user can select the detail setting button on the screen at the time of program reservation, and can select operation on / off while viewing the detail setting screen.

  FIG. 15 shows an example of a detailed setting screen 60 that appears when a “detailed setting” button on the reservation screen is selected and clicked when a recording reservation is made for one program. As shown in the figure, the “main part automatic chapter division” item 60 a is “ON”. This state means that the chapter division operation described above can be obtained. “On” and “Off” can be switched cyclically by moving the cursor to the item 60 a by remote control operation and pressing the enter key.

  Further, the screen 60 is provided with an item 60b called “magic chapter division” which is a structure analysis chapter division of the video signal. The function based on the “structure analysis chapter division” and the function based on the “main chapter automatic chapter division” described above (CM period detection is accurate) are different in chapter division processing.

  As described above (FIGS. 8 and 9), the function based on “structure analysis chapter division” mainly analyzes video data and determines the similarity of a field or a frame image. Is the method. In the main chapter automatic chapter division function, an example is shown in which the item 60b “Structural analysis chapter division” appears on the screen 60-1 that appears when the detailed setting button is clicked from the recording reservation screen. However, the item 60b for setting “Structural analysis chapter division” appears on the screen for selecting the recording device from the menu screen and then setting the recording function.

  FIG. 16 shows an example in which an item 60b “Structural analysis chapter division” appears on the screen 60-2 for setting the recording function. Also on this screen, an item 60b for setting whether or not to perform “structural analysis chapter division” appears.

  On the screens 60-1 and 60-2 described above, the mark of the operation unit of the remote controller is displayed. That is, a cursor key mark for moving the cursor in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction and a determination key mark are displayed. This is an effective mark for guiding the user's operation.

  The processing method of the arbitrary section detection processing unit 11q described above is not limited to the above embodiment. Furthermore, the voice mode may be detected and the voice mode information may be added and used. For example, the change point of the voice mode is detected, and the detection information of the change point is also used.

  For example, when it is determined that most of the main part is in the stereo mode, the method described with reference to FIGS. 10 to 14 is adopted, and when it is determined that the main part has a mixture of the stereo mode and the monaural mode. May also use the information of the voice mode change point and add the mode change point to the chapter division point. However, the chapter division points in the above arbitrary section are ignored.

  FIG. 17 is a diagram showing the overall configuration of a recording / reproducing apparatus to which the present invention is applied. This recording / reproducing apparatus has two types of disk drive units. The optical disc 101 is an information recording medium that can construct a video file. The disk drive unit 102 rotates and drives the optical disk 101 to read / write information. A hard disk drive (HDD) unit 104 drives the hard disk.

  The data processor unit 103 can supply recording data to the disk drive unit 102 and the hard disk drive unit 104, and can receive a reproduced signal. The disk drive unit 102 includes a rotation control system, a laser drive system, an optical system, and the like for the optical disk 101.

  The data processor unit 103 handles data in recording or reproduction units, and includes a buffer circuit, a modulation / demodulation circuit, an error correction unit, and the like.

  This recording / reproducing apparatus mainly includes an encoder unit 200 constituting the recording side, a decoder unit 300 constituting the reproducing side, and a microcomputer block 400 that controls the operation of the apparatus main body. The encoder unit 200 includes a video and audio analog-to-digital converter that digitizes an input analog video signal or analog audio signal, a video encoder, and an audio encoder. Further, it includes a sub-picture encoder that compresses subtitles of movies.

  The output of the encoder unit 200 is converted into a predetermined DVD (DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD-RAM, etc.) format by a formatter 204 including a buffer memory 203 and supplied to the data processor unit 103. The encoder unit 200 receives an external analog video signal and an external analog audio signal from the AV input unit 211, or an analog video signal and an analog audio signal from the TV tuner 212. Note that the encoder unit 200 can also directly supply the compressed digital video signal or digital audio signal to the formatter 204 when a compressed digital video signal or digital audio signal is directly input. The encoder unit 200 can also directly supply the digital video signal and the audio signal that have been subjected to analog-digital conversion to the video mixing unit 305 and the audio selector 301, respectively.

  In the video encoder included in the encoder unit 200, the digital video signal is converted into a digital video signal compressed at a variable bit rate based on the MPEG2 or MPEG1 standard. The audio signal is converted into a digital audio signal compressed at a fixed bit rate based on the MPEG or AC-3 standard, or a linear PCM digital audio signal.

  When a sub-video signal is input from the AV input unit 211 (for example, a signal from a DVD video player with an independent output terminal of the sub-video signal), or a DVD video signal having such a data structure is broadcast and is used as a TV tuner. When received at 212, the sub-video signal in the DVD video signal is encoded (run-length encoded) by the sub-video encoder to become a sub-picture bitmap.

  The encoded digital video signal, digital audio signal, and sub-picture data are packed by the formatter 204 to become a video pack, an audio pack, and a sub-picture pack, and these are assembled to form a DVD-recording standard (for example, DVD-RAM). , DVD-R, DVD-RW, etc.).

  Here, this apparatus uses the data processor unit 103 to send information (packets of video, audio, sub-picture data, etc.) formatted by the formatter 204 and the created management information to the hard disk drive unit 104 or the data disk drive unit. 102, and can be recorded on the hard disk or the optical disc 101. Further, information recorded on the hard disk or the optical disk can be recorded on the optical disk 101 or the hard disk via the data processor unit 103 and the disk drive unit 102.

  It is also possible to perform an editing process such as deleting a part of video objects of a plurality of programs recorded on the hard disk or the optical disc 101 or connecting objects of different programs. This is because editing is facilitated by defining a data unit handled by the DVD format and performing signal processing in this data unit.

  The microcomputer block 400 includes an MPU (micro processing unit) or CPU (central processing unit), a ROM in which a control program and the like are written, and a RAM for providing a work area necessary for executing the program. Yes.

  The MPU of the microcomputer block 400 executes defect location detection, unrecorded area detection, recording information recording position setting, UDF recording, AV address setting, etc. using the RAM as a work area according to the control program stored in the ROM. To do.

  The microcomputer block 400 includes an information processing unit necessary for controlling the entire system, and includes a work RAM, a directory detection unit, a VMG (total video management information) information creation unit, a copy-related information detection unit, and a copy. And a scrambling information processing unit (RDI processing unit), a packet header processing unit, a sequence header processing unit, an aspect ratio information processing unit, and the like.

  Among the execution results of the MPU, the contents to be notified to the user are displayed on the display unit 402 of the video data recording / reproducing apparatus or displayed on the monitor display as OSD (on-screen display). The microcomputer block 400 has a key input unit 401 that gives an operation signal for operating the apparatus. The timing at which the microcomputer block 400 controls the disk drive unit 102, the hard disk drive unit 104, the data processor unit 103, the encoder unit 200, and / or the decoder unit 300 is based on time data from an STC (system time clock) 403. Can be executed.

  Recording and playback operations are normally executed in synchronization with the time clock from the STC 403, but other processing may be executed at a timing independent of the STC 403.

  The decoder unit 300 separates and extracts each pack from a DVD format signal having a pack structure, a memory used when pack separation or other signal processing is performed, and main video data (video pack) separated by the separator. A V decoder that decodes the content), an SP decoder that decodes the sub-picture data separated by the separator (the contents of the sub-picture pack), and an A decoder that decodes the audio data separated by the separator (the contents of the audio pack) Have A video processor is also provided that appropriately synthesizes the decoded sub-video with the decoded main video and outputs the main video with a menu, a highlight button, subtitles, and other sub-videos.

  The output video signal of the decoder unit 300 is input to the video mixing unit 305. In the video mixing unit 305, text data is synthesized. The video mixing unit 305 is also connected to a line that directly takes in signals from the TV tuner 212 and the A / V input unit 211. A frame memory 306 used as a buffer is connected to the video mixing unit 305. When the output of the video mixing unit 305 is an analog output, it is output to the outside via an I / F (interface) 307, and when it is a digital output, it is output to the outside via a digital / analog converter 308.

  The video mixing unit 305 can output an image signal for creating a GUI guide screen (the screen described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 9). This image signal is controlled by a guide screen processing control unit in the microcomputer block 400. Furthermore, an operation input determination unit 40a, a recording reservation control unit 40b, an edit processing control unit 40c, a guidance screen processing control unit 40d, and the like are also provided, and the control unit 400 can control the entire apparatus.

  Further, the microcomputer block 400 is provided with a control block 40e for performing the “main chapter automatic chapter division” and a control block 40f for performing “magic chapter division”.

  In addition, in the correspondence relationships of FIGS. 1, 10, and 17, the tuner 1, the tuner 21, and the tuner 212 are in a correspondence relationship. 1 and FIG. 17 includes the audio signal processing unit 22 shown in FIG. Also, the CPU 11 in FIG. 1, the silence detection device 25, the silence time recording device 26, the silence interval calculation device 27, the chapter boundary setting device 28 in FIG. 10, and the control unit 400 in FIG.

  In FIG. 17, the output audio signal of the decoder unit 300 is analog-converted by the digital-analog converter 302 via the selector 301 and output to the outside. The selector 301 is controlled by a select signal from the microcomputer block 400. Accordingly, the selector 301 can directly select a signal that has passed through the encoder unit 200 when directly monitoring a digital signal from the TV tuner 212 or the A / V input unit 211.

  Note that the formatter of the encoder unit 200 creates segmentation information during recording and periodically sends it to the MPU of the microcomputer block 400 (information at the time of GOP head interrupt, etc.). The segmentation information includes the number of packs of VOBU (video object unit), the end address of the I picture from the beginning of the VOBU, the playback time of the VOBU, and the like.

  At the same time, information from the aspect information processing unit is sent to the MPU at the start of recording, and the MPU creates VOB stream information (STI). Here, the STI stores resolution data, aspect data, and the like, and at the time of reproduction, each decoder unit is initialized based on this information.

  In this apparatus, one video file is recorded on one disc. In order to continue playback without interruption while accessing (seeking) data, a minimum continuous information unit (size) is determined. This unit is called CDA (Contiguous Data Area). The CDA size is a multiple of an ECC (error correction code) block (16 sectors), and the file system records in this CDA unit.

  The data processor unit 103 receives data in VOBU units from the formatter of the encoder unit 200 and supplies data in CDA units to the disk drive unit 102 or the hard disk drive unit 104. Further, the MPU of the microcomputer block 400 creates management information necessary for reproducing the recorded data. When the MPU recognizes a data recording end command, the MPU sends the created management information to the data processor unit 103. Thereby, the management information is recorded on the disc. Therefore, when encoding is performed, the MPU of the microcomputer block 400 receives data unit information (eg, segmentation information) from the encoder unit 200. The MPU of the microcomputer block 400 recognizes the management information (file system) read from the optical disk and the hard disk at the start of recording, recognizes the unrecorded area of each disk, and sets the data recording area in the data processor unit 103. Is set to disk via.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Further, various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the embodiment. For example, some components may be deleted from all the components shown in the embodiment. Furthermore, you may combine suitably the component covering different embodiment.

It is a figure which shows the example of a whole structure of the signal processing apparatus shown in order to demonstrate one Embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the basic structural example of one embodiment of this invention. It is a figure which shows the basic operation example in one embodiment of the apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the basic operation example in other embodiment of the apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of basic operation | movement in further another embodiment of the apparatus of this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of basic operation | movement in other embodiment of the apparatus of this invention. It is the flowchart shown in order to demonstrate the example of basic operation | movement in one Embodiment of the apparatus of this invention. It is explanatory drawing shown in order to demonstrate the basic processing structure of the image | video structuring process concerning one Embodiment of the apparatus of this invention. FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing the basic processing of the video structuring processing according to the embodiment of the apparatus of the present invention and showing the continuation of FIG. 8. It is explanatory drawing shown in order to demonstrate the basic processing structure of the arbitrary area detection processing concerning one embodiment of the apparatus of this invention. FIG. 11 is a timing chart shown for explaining an example of an operation executed by the apparatus of FIG. 10. FIG. It is the flowchart shown in order to demonstrate the basic operation example of the operation | movement performed with the apparatus of FIG. FIG. 11 is a flowchart shown in order to explain the basic operation example of the operation executed by the apparatus of FIG. 10 in more detail. It is the flowchart shown in order to demonstrate the basic operation example of the operation | movement performed with the apparatus of FIG. It is a figure which shows the example of the screen for setting the main part automatic chapter division | segmentation operation | movement which concerns on this invention. It is a figure which shows the example of the screen for setting the chapter division | segmentation process demonstrated in FIG. 8, FIG. It is explanatory drawing which shows the structure block of the recording / reproducing apparatus to which this invention was applied.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Tuner, 2 ... Transport decoder, 3 ... AV decoder, 6 ... OSD controller, 7 ... Direct RDRAM, 8 ... SCRAM, 9 ... EEPROM, 11 ... Control part, 21 ... Tuner, 22 ... Audio signal processing part, 23 ... Encoder, 24... Data processing unit, 25. Silence detection device, 26. Silence time recording device, 27. Silence interval calculation device, and 28.

Claims (6)

In an apparatus for obtaining the first delimiter information divided according to the semantic content of the video signal by analyzing the similarity between successive frames of the video signal,
It has a control unit that analyzes the audio signal, and this control unit
While detecting the silent part of the audio signal, it detects a section in which the time interval between the silent part and the next silent part and the count number of the detected silent part satisfy the predetermined condition, and for the first and last silent part Generate second separator information,
While overlapping the first and second delimiter information to obtain third delimiter information,
If the first delimiter information exists between the second delimiter information given to the first and last silence parts, the first delimiter information is not adopted. Delimiter information setting method for video signal determined from audio and video signal. The predetermined condition is:
Detecting a silent part of an audio signal and determining whether a time interval between the silent part and the next silent part is a multiple of a certain time (A);
If the time interval is a multiple of a certain time (A), the detection of silence is counted, and if the number of silences is greater than or equal to the threshold (B), the second and second silences are counted for the first and last silences. The method for setting delimiter information of a video signal determined from audio and video signals according to claim 1, wherein the delimiter information is acquired.   3. The method for setting delimiter information for a video signal determined from audio and video signals according to claim 2, wherein the interval set by the second delimiter information is a segment determined by the control unit as a commercial segment.   The determination between audio and video signals according to claim 1, wherein the interval between the second delimiter information given to the first and last silent sections is a section determined by the control section as a music part. To set the delimiter information of the video signal. In an apparatus having a video structuring processing unit that analyzes a similarity between consecutive frames of a video signal and obtains first segment information segmented according to the semantic content of the video signal.
An arbitrary section detection processing unit for analyzing a voice signal, the arbitrary section detection processing unit,
Silence detector,
A storage unit for storing the silent detection time when the silent unit is detected;
A silent part time interval measuring unit for measuring a time interval between the silent part and the next silent part;
A silent part in which the time interval of the silent part is a multiple of a predetermined time (A) and a predetermined number (B) of continuous silent parts are specified, and second delimiter information is set in the first and last silent parts Counting and condition determination unit,
The first delimiter information and the second delimiter information from the condition determination unit are input to generate third delimiter information in which the first and second delimiter information are overlapped, and the first and last silent portions A boundary setting processing unit that does not adopt the first delimiter information when the first delimiter information is present between the second delimiter information given to Delimiter information setting device for video signals determined from audio and video signals. A first storage unit that stores the first delimiter information; and a second storage unit that stores the second delimiter information;
6. The boundary setting processing unit generates the third delimiter information using first and second delimiter information from the first and second storage units. Delimiter information setting device for video signals determined from audio and video signals.

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